Statutory notifications
Under the Infectious Diseases Regulations, 1981 (as amended), medical practitioners and clinical directors of diagnostic laboratories are required to transmit notification of cases of infectious disease to a medical officer of health. These notifications are forwarded by the HSE areas to the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) who collate, analyse and report on the data. Access HPSC reports
The list of notifiable diseases laid down in the 1981 Regulations has been amended through the years. On 1st January 2004, a revised list was established, and the requirement for laboratory directors to report infectious disease was introduced (S.I. No. 707 of 2003). This amendment was a major step forward in the surveillance of infectious diseases in Ireland. It also introduced a significant change to the reporting procedures for food- and water-borne illness. As of 1st January 2004, reports of food- and water-borne illness are specified individually, (e.g., Campylobacter infection, cryptosporidiosis, listeriosis, staphylococcal food poisoning). Previously they were reported under only two categories: salmonellosis (other than typhoid or paratyphoid), or food poisoning (bacterial other than salmonella). The amendment also introduced the use of case definitions for infectious diseases, which were drawn up in line with standardised European case definitions.
Notifications in 2004 - 2007
The HPSC is responsible for the collation and analysis of notifications of cases and outbreaks of infectious diseases, including those that can be transmitted by food or water. A summary of notifications of cases of infectious disease that can be transmitted by food or water is provided below, however full reports are available from the HPSC website.
| Notifications of cases of infectious disease, with the potential to be transmitted via food or watera (2004-2008). | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Disease |
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
2007 |
2008b |
|
Acute infectious gastroenteritis |
1,898 |
2,398 |
2,306 |
2,520 |
4,186c |
|
Bacillus cereus |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
Botulism |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
7 |
|
Brucellosis |
60 |
53 |
29 |
28 |
3 |
|
Campylobacter infection |
1,710 |
1,801 |
1,812 |
1,891 |
1,752 |
|
Cholera (Vibrio cholerae) |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
Clostridium perfringens |
5 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
nv Creutzfeldt Jakob disease |
0 |
2 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
|
Cryptosporidiosis |
431 |
568 |
367 |
609 |
416 |
|
Echinococcosis |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
|
Enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli |
67 |
134 |
174 |
192 |
241 |
|
Giardiasis (Giardia lamblia) |
53 |
57 |
65 |
62 |
71 |
|
Hepatitis A (acute) |
47 |
56 |
39 |
32 |
42 |
|
Listeriosis |
11 |
12 |
7 |
21 |
13 |
|
Noroviral infection |
1,125 |
1,045 |
1,635 |
1,317 |
1,776 |
|
Paratyphoid (Salmonella paratyphi) |
4 |
0 |
1 |
4 |
7 |
|
Salmonellosis |
416 |
347 |
422 |
456 |
449 |
|
Shigellosis |
56 |
36 |
54 |
43 |
75 |
|
Staphylococcal food poisoning |
3 |
6 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
Toxoplasmosis |
33 |
45 |
44 |
49 |
64 |
|
Trichinosis |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
1 |
|
Tuberculosis (Mycobacterium bovis) |
3 |
4 |
5 |
5b |
Not yet available |
|
Typhoid (Salmonella typhi) |
5 |
5 |
9 |
9 |
6 |
|
Yersinosis |
6 |
3 |
1 |
6 |
3 |
|
aSome of these diseases can be transmitted by routes other than by food or water b Provisional data cAIG notifications for 2008 cannot be compared to previous years as, from May 2008, cases of toxin-producing Clostridium difficile became notifiable under this category (Source HPSC) |
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Voluntary Laboratory reporting
In addition to statutory notifications, data on laboratory confirmed infections from local hospitals are collected on a voluntary basis by public health specialists. Salmonella data are collected by the National Salmonella Reference Laboratory (NSRL). These data are sent to Enter-net, an EU funded project for the surveillance of salmonellosis and E. coli O157 in Europe. Enhanced surveillance of E. coli O157 is currently being carried out by the HPSC. The HPSC also request Departments of Public Health and laboratories to provide disaggregated information on all laboratory-confirmed cases of campylobacteriosis diagnosed.
CIDR
Computerised Infectious Disease Reporting (CIDR) was developed to manage the surveillance and control of infectious diseases in Ireland, and to monitor antimicrobial resistance. CIDR is a web-based system that allows information from laboratories to be entered electronically or manually. This information is then linked to clinical and epidemiological information, provided by public health professionals. All CIDR information is protected by appropriate security and confidentiality mechanisms, so on-line access to the information in CIDR is controlled allowing personally identifiable information to be visible only to those with a need to manage the individual case. CIDR has a powerful reporting tool which allows easy web access to standard reports. CIDR is a shared national information system for CIDR partners: Health Service Executive; HPSC; FSAI; safefood, the Food Safety Promotion Board; and Department of Health and Children.